Convertible garment



Jan. 19, 1943. y `1 MINTZES 2,3%929' CONVERT IBLE GARMENT Filed. Feb. 20, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet l LOUIS MIN-F255 mais: INVEN TOR.

ATTORNEY.

CONVERTIBLE. GARMENT Filed Feb. 20, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet? LOUIS MINI'ZES' INVENTOR.

Patented Jan. 19, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT FENCE 2 Claims.

This invention relates to aform tting athletic garment which may be readily converted inward- 1y into a bifurcated form.

An object of this invention is to provide a garment having an automatically adjustable waist portion and a vertically adjustable bifurcated inner garment.

Another object of this invention is to provide an athletic garment having a bifurcated inner garment detachably secured thereto and having an opening all along the inseam leg portions at the crotch for enabling the wearer to quickly and conveniently perform the various natural functions of the body without removing the said trouser from the garment.

Another object of this invention is to provide a convertible athletic garment having a dress and a bifurcated inner garment, and to provide vertically positioned fastening elements on both sides of the dress and on both sides of the inner garment for securing the inner garment in unitary relation with the dress, the overall length of the said fastening elements on the dress being greater than the length of the bifurcated inner garment to permit vertical adjustment of the bifuroated inner garment relative to the dress.

Another object of this invention is to provide a two-member bifurcated inner garment having open sides permitting ventilation along the sides of the garment while maintaining the crotch portion closed.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention will be hereinafter more particularly described, and the combination and arrangement of parts will be shown in the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims which form part of this specification.

Reference will now be had to the drawings, wherein like numerals of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the convertible garment.

Figure 2 is a view inside the garment in open position, the bifurcated inner garment being in attached relation within the garment.

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view, the section being taken as on line 3 3 in Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a front elevation of the trousers, on an enlarged scale.

Figure 5 is a front elevation of a modified garment.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view f of a front panel of the garment shown in Figure 5.

Figure 7 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the garment at the waist portion.

ln the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the numeral IG indicates a convertible athletic garment comprising an upper body portion Ii and a lower skirt portion l2. The skirt portion i2 flares outwardly from the waistline to the bottom edge I3. The waistline portion Hi has a beit I5 integrally secured thereto.

The belt i5 is attached to the garment only at the top and bottom edges and provides a circumferential passageway Iii between the belt itself and the garment material. The belt I 5 has two front openings Il, l'i to permit entrance therein for an inner belt I8.

The waistline portion Iii preferably has a surlus of material and the inner belt l is made of elastic and is designed to automatically gather the surplus material oi the garment all around the waistline to form a form-litting waistline while permitting expansion of the waistline during athletic exercises.

As shown in Figure 2, the garment li) has two front flaps I9, I9. The flap I9 has buttonholes il@ while the flap it" has complementary buttons 2l. The flaps ES and i9 provide a separable front opening 22 in the garment i@ extending from the neck 23 to the bottom edge I3. The buttons provide a means for closing the opening 22.

I have provided inwardly extending naps 25, 25 at the front and at the rear of the garment lil. The inner flaps are preferably formed by folding the garment fabric inwardly. The inner iiaps have vertically spaced buttonholes 2E, 26. The inner flaps are directed toward each other and start substantially at the waistline I4 and terminate above the bottom edge E3. As shown in Figure 3, it will be seen that the aps are of considerable width and have the fastening elements at the free ends thereof to permit the garment members yto be secured in spaced apart relation.

Trousers 2l having vertically spaced buttons 28 at opposite edge portions and complementary with the buttonholes 25 has been secured to the garment il! With its upper edge portion 29 below the wastline I4.

The trousers 2l is vertically adjustable in the garment I l) by securing the buttons 28 to the buttonholes 26 at different elevations. The trousers may thus be raised or lowered within the garment and secured thereto with its upper edge at different positions in the vicinity of the waist. The trousers 2l has an inseam and is separable along the inseam and consists of front and rear members 3E), 3G having a detachable crotch 3| which extends in detachable relation along the inner sides of the trouser legs 32. The crotch and leg extensions of the said two-member trousers may be joined together by fastener means 33 to form a unitary trousers.

As best shown in Figure 3, the trouser legs 32, 32, do not extend entirely around the leg openings and only partly enclose the legs of the wearer. The said trouser legs leave the outer portions oi the wearers legs uncovered. These uncovered leg portions are in actual use covered by the skirt portion of the garment l.

The open trouser legs 32 are joined by elastic or otherwise adjustable bands 34 which closely t around the thigh of the wearer. The bands 34 serve to maintain the inner sides of the trouf ser legs 32 in contacting relation with the wearers legs. It will thus be seen that the trousers 21 form a complete biiurcated inner garment or short which may be secured to or detached from the skirt portion I2 wherein the said inner garment is concealed.

The garment ill has front panel sections 35, 35 extending from the lower front portion of the neck 23 to the bottom edge I3. The front panel sections may be detachably fastened together by the buttons 2| which are sewed to one of the sections and adapted to cooperate in suitable buttonholes formed in the other section. The front panel sections serve to conceal the trousers 2l.

Figure 5 shows a modied athletic garment 4U having an upper body portion 4| and a lower skirt portion 42. The upper body portion 4l is preferably like the upper portion ll shown in Figures 1 and 2, that is, the garment 43 may have its waist opening closed by buttons. lThe skirt portion 42 has front panel sections 43, 43 which do not extend to the middle of the garment so as to provide an open portion 44 in the front of the garment. The opening 44 is normally covered by the trousers 2l which is exposed. It is to be noted that the garment 4@ has a rear space (not shown) similar to the front space Q4.

As best shown in Figure 6, the free ends of the front panel sections 43, i3 have buttonhole strips 45 which may be concealed by outside pleats 46. The pleats conceal the buttons 28.

The user may adjust the position of the trousers 21 by securing the buttons 28 of the trousers to buttonholes 47 in the strips 45. The trousers may thus be raised or lowered within the garment 4l).

For the purpose of protecting the body of the wearer from exposure when the upper edge of the trouser 2 is lowered excessively below the waistling I4, I have provided flaps d8 overhanging from the belt or waist portion at the front and rear of the garment. The flaps 48 cover the upper edge portion of the trousers in all adjusted positions.

It is to lbe noted that the user may unbutton the rear portion or rear member of the trousers and provide a dropseat for performing the various natural functions without opening the crotch portion. Also that with the construction shown in Figure 5, it is not necessary to use a two merober trousers having a detachable crotch.

It is also to be noted that while I have shown the use of flaps 48 for covering the opening 49 between the upper edge portion 23 oi the trousers 21 and the lower elevation of the waistline I4, that I may make athletic garments having such front and back openings and without the said flaps 48.

As shown in Figure 7, the belt i5 is stitched to the garment li) by upper and lower lines of stitching 50, 50, forming a transverse passageway i6 between the belt I5 and the garment fabric. The belt l5 has two openings I1, l1 to permit passage through said passageway i6 for an inner belt i3 made of elastic material. A transverse line of stitching (not shown) secures the inner belt i8 in fixed engagement Within the outer belt l5 at the rear of the garment. The user may, by grasping and pulling the ends of the inner belt i8 outwardly and suddenly releasing said ends, cause surplus material in the waist portion to be gathered into folds 53 for adjusting the waist portion of the garment into form-fitting relation without alteration when buying such garments in ready made form. A buckle 54 serves to receive the apertured end 55 of the inner belt i8 to maintain the adjusted waistline portion of the garment. It is to be noted that the inner belt I8 is in practice in substantially snugly tting relation in the outer belt I5.

It is to be noted that While I have shown the crotch portions of the two trouser members 30, as secured together by Zipper fastening means 33, that this form of fastening means may be taken as representing any suitable means for performing the same function.

While I have shown in Figure 5, only the front portion of the trousers 2l exposed at the front of the garment, it is to be noted that the rear portion of the trousers may also be exposed at the rear of the garment.

By trousers or biurcated inner garment I mean what is known in the art as a short In this disclosure the short has open side portions.

Referring to Figure 4, it will be seen that the side edges and the line of buttons are drawn in nonvertical position. In actual use, the edge portions or the crotch are closer together and the side edges and the line of buttons assume substantially vertical positions in which the buttons are adapted to cooperate with the vertically positioned line of buttonholes in the garment.

It is also to be noted that when the front and rear portions of the trousers are removed, front and rear skirt portions may be substituted in place of the said trouser portions, so as to convert the garment into a tunic.

In accordance with the patent statutes I have described and illustrated the preferred embodiment of my invention, but it will be understood that various changes and modcations can be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention as dened by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a convertible athletic garment having a front opening, means for closing said opening, an outer garment, an inner garment composed of iront and rear members bifurcated at the lower ends, the side edges of said members being spaced apart, said inner garment having an inseam extending through the bifurcation forming leg members and being separable along said inseam, said leg members having adjustable bands secured to the lower edge portions thereof and serving to maintain said leg members in contacting relationwith the wearers legs, said inner garment having fastening elements secured to the side edges thereof, said outer garment having complementary fastening elements for securing said inner garment in unitary relation therewith to produce a pair of leg enclosures inside said outer garment, the bottom edge of said outer garment being in overhanging relation With said inner garment, the overall length of said fastening elements on said outer garment being greater than the length of said inner garment to permit vertical adjustment of said inner garment relative to said outer garment.

2. In a convertible garment, an outer garment member, an inner garment member composed of front and rear body portions, said inner garment being bifurcated and forming leg members, the side edges of said body portions being spaced apart substantially throughout the length of said inner garment, said inner garment having an inseam extending through said bifuraction, said leg members having openings at the sides opposite said inseam, the lower end portions of said leg members comprising fabric of reduced height eX- tending around the outer sides thereof and providing only partial coverage of the legs of the wearer at said outer sides, said inner garment having fastening elements secured to the edges of said open sides, said outer garment having in- Wardly extending elongated upright flaps formed by inwardly folding the fabric of said outer garment, said aps starting substantially at the Waist line and terminating above the bottom edge of said outer garment, said aps having complementary fastening elements for securing said inner garment in Lmitary relation with said outer garment, said flaps being of considerable Width and having said fastening elements at the free ends thereof to permit said garment members to be secured in spaced apart relation, the bottom edge of said outer garment being in over hanging relation with said inner garment, said complementary fastening elements serving to permit vertical adjustment of said inner garment relative to said outer garment.

LOUIS MINTZES. 

